Classy of him to refrain from pointing out that he probably had trouble getting people to take his ideas seriously at least partly because he was black.
Also - and slighly off topic - it's really amazing just how alive and well the old one-drop rule is. Alford is described as half-black, half-Filipino. But I gather most readers come away from the article thinking of him as black. I doubt anyone would come away from the article just calling him a Filipino. I'm biracial myself, so I always find this interesting.
This is one of those cases where "African American" is correct and "black" is not. Some Filipinos are black: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negrito
Five to one says Serrin Turner is white.
1. Silently endure it, and hope the world becomes a better place(it wont) 2. Point it out and then endure criticism that you are being classless or not respectable